1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to audio signal processing circuits and, in particular, to their application in hearing aids for the correction of frequency definable hearing loss.
2. Statement of the Prior Art
The respective art areas of hearing aids and audio signal processing circuits are both well known and highly sophistocated. Generally, the trend in hearing aid development has been towards miniaturization for the purpose of providing convenience of use along with aesthetic appearance. Hearing aids incorporating analog circuitry have been constructed having a frequency response which varies over the audio frequency bandwidth. However, such devices have been limited in that the response at any given frequency if fixed and therefore cannot be varied except by an overall volume control or by reconstructing the hearing aid. Thus, these devices cannot easily compensate for variations in background noise and hearing environments, reduction of useable volume range, changes in a user's hearing response, intermittent problems such as tinnitus, or other conditions and situations which would require a variation in the frequency response of the device.